JARAGUA DO SUL, Brazil – Felipe Arantes didn’t escape unscathed from his bout with Maximo Blanco, but thanks to a hard right hand and a few key escapes he did do enough to earn a unanimous decision victory (29-27, 29-27, 29-27) in front of a crowd of his countrymen.

The featherweight bout was part of the preliminary card of today’s UFC Fight Night 36 event at Arena Jaragua in Jaragua do Sul, Santa Catarina, Brazil. It streamed on UFC Fight Pass ahead of the main card on FOX Sports 1.

As is his habit, Blanco came roaring out to a fast start in Round 1, digging in with heavy body shots when Arantes attempted to cover up against the fence.

But with Blanco’s attacks becoming a little too predictable, Arantes managed to counter with a right that dropped Blanco and looked like it might be the beginning of the end, until a choke attempt by Arantes gave him the chance to escape and recover.

The action slowed way down in Round 2, but in the third Blanco made a critical error, letting an inside leg kick slip up into Arantes’ groin, dropping the Brazilian to the mat and resulting in a one-point deduction from referee Mario Yamasaki. Arantes would go on to control the rest of that round, however, making the point deduction largely academic.

“We were both coming off losses; it’s terrible to fight under that kind of pressure,” Arantes said. “You end up holding back a bit. Thankfully I listened to my cornermen and kept moving forward the entire time. I think I would have done better (if) I hadn’t been hit by that groin shot.”

Arantes (16-6-1 MMA, 3-2-1 UFC) has now won two of his past three in the UFC, rebounding from a split-decision loss in September. Blanco (9-6-1 MMA, 1-3 UFC) has now lost two straight.